My Effect: From the Slumber
by Quirky Circuit
Summary: At the edge of our galaxy, the Old Machines slumber, their dreams haunting our very existence. As humanity begins to find its place, a fifty thousand year old threat emerges from the darkness, and the shadows set their will against us. My Effect tie-in.
1. Prologue

PROLOGUE-

"They say no one else survived"

"Begin landing preparations in ten minutes," Captain Henriksen said to the pilot of the SSV Arbela, a small Alliance frigate performing routine patrols among colony worlds. The Arbela emerged from FTL travel unscathed, as always, bursting forth as if a hole had been ripped in the very fabric of space. Streaking stars became specks of light, dots along the vast black blanket that filled the atmosphere around them.

Casually flying through space, Henriksen noted his crew's destination; a small, barren planet, flat and ignored by the evolving universe around it. This was Akuze, where an Alliance pioneer team embarked nearly a week ago under the instructions to gather any necessary data and potential terraforming suggestions, and report in after a forty-eight hour survey.

The deadline lapsed and the pioneer team failed to respond to any inquiries or investigation. All channels had gone silent. After some foolish democratic debate over whether a full investigation would bear any fruit, it was decided that the SSV Arbela, the closest frigate to Akuze and its system, would be handed orders to maintain a vector toward Akuze and once it finished standard patrols to proceed to the necessary coordinates and report back if Alliance intervention was necessary.

It was the year 2177, and while the Alliance had colonized a number of worlds, spreading their vast empire along the stretches of space, the average encounter of pirates or raiders during these pioneering operations were just the norm. That, or batarian slavers. To send a full armada out during situations like one of those, it was wasteful on resources and staff. A frigate with fifty well equipped marines could easily engage an offensive operation against a minuscule band of thugs.

Leaving the comfort of the bridge, a place where Henriksen found the most appealing to gather thoughts and assess his tactics, he strolled out along a now cramped hall, nearly running into Corporal Toombs, who came to an abrupt stop, stiffened and saluted his superior officer. The Captain returned the salute, continuing down the hall toward the elevator lift in the back of the ship.

He was about several meters from the elevator when the pilot's voice came in over the ship's comm network. "Captain, scans show no ships in atmosphere. Radar is clean and we're good to go."

"Then take us down," Henriksen said, pressing his thumb into the red button, forcing it inside the wall, he could hear the elevator's response, a slow, steady ascent to its caller. With an unbearable silence, the doors slid open and the Captain boarded, initiating his decent.

These were Alliance men and women, personnel with no quarrel, only to study and gather evidence on worlds that could-or potentially could-sustain, human life. As such Henriksen was not a man to give an order to go in blind if he wasn't willing to lead the charge personally. He hated being cooped up on these ships and patrols. His life was on the field, that was where his heart belonged. In the throes of battle, with the scent of scorched flesh dancing up his nostrils, filling him with the desire to carry on.

It had destroyed four of his marriages before Henriksen realized this was where he belonged. Except now, here he was, patrolling on a ship that had never seen conflict. A grin slowly crept up on, his lips thinning into a sly, barely noticeable smile. Taking off his hat, the Captain revealed his clean shaven, and quite pale, head. He rubbed it fondly, glistening with excitement at the hope of engaging some unknown threat, buried out there.

Of course, there was always the possibility that connections dropped and he would be met with a fully aware, safe and secure team of thoughtless pioneers. It wasn't that he was wishing demise on them, quite the contrary. He just sought a lust for some kind of conflict. Henriksen's back was tattooed with a line for every man that died serving with him. It was the only way he knew how to honor his brothers and sisters in arms.

Nestling a secure helmet over his head, he dropped the visor and looked at the other soldiers gripping their weapons, fully geared in pristine, delicate slabs of armor. He noticed another four prepping the MAKO for a potential ground assault. But he wouldn't be boarding it, there was already enough that separated a soldier from his surroundings. Kinetic shields, cumbersome armor, a slew of gadgets and equipment beyond anything he needed to enter the fray with.

There was a thud, the Arbela rocking slightly as it made impact with the planet. With no enemy sightings, nor any fire taken, the Captain was beginning to wonder if the enemy had already fled. They would need to assess the site quickly and efficiently, if the survey team were dead, there remained a slight opportunity for the Arbela to launch and investigate neighboring planets, possibly uncovering the murderers responsible, bringing them to justice. It would be a beautiful chase.

Eyeing the marines, Henriksen noted one in particular, hidden back in the shadows, she sat and loaded a clip into her pistol before collapsing it and holstering the firearm on her right hip. Her light brown, almost dirty blond hair was pulled back neatly, a few bangs framing her face, while a single lock of hair fell along her nose, where her light freckles could only be seen upon a close inspection.

Henriksen noted her when she was assigned because of her file; she was Earth-born, like him. And that made her an even closer sister than the rest. As they were the only two Earth-born among the fifty marines on the Arbela.

"Load 'em up!" Henriksen shouted.

Systematically, the marines fell in place, the four whose time was spent observing the MAKO quickly boarded the vehicle, its engines whirring to life, the cannon resting above its cockpit snapping into place as the crew inside took control. Henriksen even noticed one of the men inside was Corporal Toombs.

The floor beneath the MAKO dropped down into a ramp, sand and dust stirring as the Alliance marines unsettled the earth below. Henriksen took point, the MAKO took careful guidance to remain at a steady speed, with marines strolling along its right, left, and rear.

Akuze was a barren land, certainly a planet capable of massive benefits were the Alliance to eventually terraform it into a lush, stable environment for colonization. At this point, it was more likely to frighten off settlers than garner attention. The world was mostly flat, gray and dull. Only a few hills rounded out the area to give it any character, with a mountain in the far distance, just barely visible.

With the state of the world, the Arbela had decided to touchdown relatively close to the survey site. Just some fourteen meters out from what appeared to be three quick built stations, and an overturned, makeshift command center resting in the middle of it all. The ground was violated, probably due to inspections concerning the safety of the planet. No noxious gas or fumes insulted the air. All in all, the world seemed ripe for colonization.

The camp was quiet, peaceful even. There was no sign of an aggressive assault, no discharge of firearms, a lack of any marks that would suggest a firefight had taken place. Above all else, there were no bodies. Not even a limb.

Captain Henriksen held up a fist, informing the unit to halt immediately, they obliged. With the MAKO resting safely, able to hit from a number of angles, he carefully informed his team to perform a search of the three surrounding stations. Three teams comprised of three individuals took charge to investigate, with the rest of the unit filling out around the base.

The earth-born woman performed a careful breach and secure procedure, performed with delicacy and care for her team. They came back with the all clear, as did the other two teams. There was no one here. The site had been abandoned.

"This doesn't make any sense," Henriksen said, rubbing at the back of his neck.

"Maybe they fled off toward those hills," Private Harper suggested.

"No," the earth-born woman argued. "There are no tracks leaving this site."

Her point was valid, Akuze was not exactly a harsh planet, the climate was tame at best. A number of tracks remained visible, no one fled. Or, at least they weren't able to flee. Even so, no blood stained any of the stations. It was all too clean. Pirates didn't do this, perhaps batarian slavers.

"We'll make camp here tonight," Henriksen said. "In the morning we'll perform a sweep of the planet and report to the Alliance for further instructions."

It was a worthy suggestion, night had fallen on the planet, making a search and rescue considerably less effective. They needed the elements on their side in an operation like this. Even depending on the terrain, a number of caves and tunnels could still litter the world, rendering it difficult to sight any members of the survey team, or for them to even notice the Alliance patrolling for survivors.

A small fire was prepared beneath the command center tent that had been repaired. Unfortunately comm was still down at the moment, but Henriksen was certain he would have it operational within the hour.

It was always breathtaking to look out at the sky from an alien world, before it was industrialized, bogged down by human expansion. It was a beautiful expression of just what the universe was capable of. Stars glittered along the cloudless sky, light that was billions of years old, blinking in and out of existence.

"I think I may have got it," Henriksen mumbled, as a steady beep emitted from the base of the commander center. Like a perfect, if annoying rhythm. Comm was running. His unit clapped and cheered, some sarcastically, others just happy they didn't have to trek to the Arbela anymore.

As the Captain started to unholster his firearm, a fierce rupture could be felt around the entire camp. Surveying his surroundings, Henriksen gripped his firearm and started a trace of the zone. Could that have been a shuttle, or some type of minor earthquake? Whatever it was, the potency of the shakes were growing.

Henriksen looked out to Corporal Toombs, who had been resting beside the MAKO until he was startled awake. There was a high pitched scream that filled the quiet atmosphere and suddenly the MAKO was engulfed in a terrifying explosion that lit up the sky like it was the fourth of July back home on Earth.

"Toombs!" Henriksen shouted as he saw the man engulfed by flames.

His unit was under assault, and they reacted accordingly. For some there was just no benefit of time, as one by one, the stations surrounding the command center were upended and sunk into the ground below. Muffled screams of agony rising above the surface.

In frantic panic, the marines simply started firing at the ground all around them. Their enemy was not with pirates nor batarians, rather it was something native to this world, and apparently aggravated.

"Get contact with the Alliance!" Henriksen yelled over the continuous gunfire.

The earth born woman was now the closest one to the comm station, dashing toward it desperate to raise a distress beacon. Henriksen witnessed her reach the station, but was unable to confirm if a beacon was launched. As the young woman transmitted, a massive, carnivorous creature erupted from the ground below, destroying the comm unit and any hope of confirming if the Alliance received their distress.

Managing to barely avoid the awaiting jaws of the monster, the woman was helped to her feet by Henriksen.

"Get to the ship," he yelled.

"There's another one," Private Harper said.

Struggling to find her gun in chaos, the earth born woman instead just picked up an assault rifle who had lost its owner. She opened a barrage of fire into the monstrous worm that had destroyed their comm, forcing it to burrow again beneath the rock. Glancing out at Harper, she noticed he was barely fending off an assault by one of the creatures when another broke forth and clinched him between its jaws.

"Goddamn it!" Henriksen said, watching, powerless to aid, as the two creatures ripped Harper in half, his head falling by the wayside as his lower torso was devoured, while another dug through the flesh of his chest and swallowed quickly.

In all, there were at least three of these creatures, and they knew this terrain well. Nearly all of his team had been wiped out in the span of six minutes, and he and the woman were still some nine meters from the Arbela. He noted as they sprinted to the ship that half of MAKO had been buried beneath the earth, but there was no opportunity to confirm if Toombs had survived, the chances were far too slim to risk it.

"We have to take off," the pilot said as the two closed in on the frigate.

He rushed back inside and began preparations, the SSV Arbela roaring to life. Just a couple of meters out, another of the creatures hauled itself up from the bowels of the earth, spitting some type of acid at its potential victims. It caught Henriksen in the back, who collapsed almost immediately, the woman stopped in her tracks and ran back to grab him, shuffling him to his feet.

Both were again shook off their feet as tremors seemed to stretch out along the entire valley. Two tore through the rock and clinched the Arbela between their salivating jaws, acid piercing the hull. A third erupted beneath Henriksen, who was caught in the worm's hungry maw. His teeth shining, revealing a proud, massive grin, Henriksen ripped off his belt and shoved it into the mouth of the monster.

The earth born woman witnessed an explosion that shredded the creature's head, tossing the top half of Henriksen's torso away. All that remained was her and the pilot. Making a dead sprint toward the ship, she threw herself onto the ramp and crawled her way inside.

It was now impossible to get space side in this piece of junk, and that meant her continued survival rested on killing these two carnivores. Her initial priority was finding the pilot, when she did find him, it was only what the acid hadn't deteriorated yet. She was the sole survivor at this point.

With no other options, she fled down to the ship's engine room. She would destroy the Arbela. Grasping several grenade belts between her sweating palms, she slid into the engine room, tossing the active belts inside. Her legs bent against the slanted wall, she could feel the monsters tugging at the ship like it was some kind of chewing toy. Propelling herself forward, she had a handful of seconds to act, throwing herself out of the ship, rolling off the ramp, and beginning a dead run, to no where in particular, just away.

Just barely far enough, the explosion rocked the entire valley, splattering the worms for miles, and violently hurling her into the ground. Her last sight was the burning wreckage of the SSV Arbela, before she slowly drifted off into unconsciousness.

When her eyes blinked open, she found her vision blurred, the Alliance soldier standing before her barely audible. She had no idea how long she had been out, or just what the man leaned over her was saying.

"Who are you?" he repeated.

"Lucy," she answered. "Shepard."

"Well, Shepard, you're incredibly lucky," he said.

"You're all that's left."


	2. Chapter One

**One**

"The Hand of God."

It had been six years since the thresher maw assault that killed an entire unit, leaving just her, Lucy Shepard, as the sole survivor. An event that shaped her entire military career with the Alliance, she was renown for an unorthodox approach to operations, often exceeding necessary perimeters to achieve a substantial goal. Most high ranking officers found her snarky and undeservingly arrogant, but when assigned to a mission, she succeeded where most others would falter.

She found it just the slightest bit entertaining, given she joined the Systems Alliance Military to escape a life of poverty and despair. Growing up on Earth, Lucy yearned for opportunity and growth, but when neglected by family, abandoned really, she discovered she had nowhere to go.

Volunteering for the Akuze assignment, she was expecting a general patrol, with little to no results. Instead she was faced with overwhelming obstacles and with an unbreakable survivalist instinct, she clawed her way out the terrors of the night, and came out the better for it. Now she heard Akuze had flourished into a lucrative colony bustling with commerce and activity. The settlers had even built a memorial in place for all of those that died in service to humanity's expansion.

Graduating from N7, an elite, special forces marine program, of which seven is the highest proficiency, Lucy is considered not just a top tier soldier, but she is also a lethal and dangerous biotic. Able to unleash singularities, a spherical mass effect field that creates a warp in the space-time continuum, producing a gravity well akin to a black hole, Shepard was more than a formidable opponent.

All of these accolades eventually put her in the crosshairs of a Captain David Anderson. He was assigned to some type of prototype ship, and the Captain sought Lucy as his Executive Officer, now just the mention of a prototype ship was enough to get Lucy at the docks and ready for launch, but she wasn't much interested in red tape and classified Council dealings. Eventually she caved, if only out of sheer curiosity.

And after nearly two weeks, the SSV Normandy SR-1-the first of its kind as a deep scout frigate, with state of the art stealth technology-was launched from Arcturus toward the awaiting depths of the galaxy. With three main decks, connected by an elevator nestled in the Combat Information Center, behind the Commanding Officer's station near the stern of the vessel. This itself was an odd setup, inspired by turian design no less.

Normally, Alliance ships stationed their CO in the midst of an Information Center to facilitate communication with subordinates. However on the Normandy, due to engineers wanting to observe how well it functioned among humans, the CO station was placed at the back of the CIC, elevated above the floor to appear like a podium, looking out at one's subordinates, rather than be surrounded by them.

In addition to that, behind the CIC, rested the comm room, used for both conferences among fellow shipmates, and as a direct link to the Council and Alliance brass. Finally, at the bow of the ship, Flight Lieutenant James "Joker" Moreau, pilot of the SR-1, called the bridge his home. All of this made up the Command Deck, or the third floor, as it were, inside the Normandy.

Lucy was strolling toward the bridge, looking for insight into their latest assignment. She passed the airlock tucked away just outside of the bridge as Joker finished his status update over the ship's comm.

"All systems online. Drift, just under fifteen-hundred K," Joker stated proudly, to the point that one could almost imagine a third arm reserved just for patting himself on the back.

"Fifteen-hundred is good," Nihlus Kryik complimented. "Your captain will be pleased."

Turning on his heel Nihlus observed Lucy and nodded only ever so slightly, dismissing Joker's evasiveness and not even noticing as the pilot rolled his eyes in disgust. She barely acknowledged the turian, if only because Shepard didn't like being pulled along on a leash, and she was certainly getting the vibe that this trip was more than some shakedown mission. They had a turian Spectre aboard, yes, the Normandy had been co-developed by the turian Hierarchy and Systems Alliance Military, with funding from the Citadel Council, but any of the Council's representatives could have tagged along for something so mundane.

This was not mundane.

"I hate that guy," Joker spat as he relaxed in his chair, supposedly the most comfortable seat the Alliance had to offer, but he would certainly know, as most of Joker's time was spent in this pilot seat, or his wheelchair.

"He compliments you, and you hate him," Kaidan Alenko noted dryly. "That makes sense."

"You remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way out of the bathroom, that's good," Joker began his rant. "I just jumped us halfway across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead, that's incredible."

Adjusting the blue cap sitting on his head, covering his dark brown hair, Joker again turned his attention to his console, and continued. "Besides, these Spectres are trouble. I don't like having 'em on board. Call me paranoid."

"You're paranoid," Kaidan said upon instruction, smiling wryly. Patting Joker on his shoulder, Alenko escaped the bridge to stretch out his legs, he just wasn't use to the confinement.

Lucy simply shook her head and immediately changed the subject; "How are you holding up, Joker?"

Squinting his eyes, Joker cast an accusing glance at his XO, and then at Kaiden's fading silhouette, and back once more at Shepard. "What's that supposed to mean? Did-did Kaidan tell you about it, or was it the captain? Lemme know, I'm not some charity case. This ship couldn't be in more capable hands, I'm more than qualified."

Cocking an eyebrow, forcing her bangs to fall between her face, Lucy had no idea what Joker'a rambling was about, and any attempt to discern it would just be met with more frantic assumptions. This was just one of his moods, but now her curiosity was up.

"What's this all about?" she asked.

"What? Oh..." Joker trailed off, beginning to blush. "No one told you, then."

"Told me what?"

"I have Vrolik syndrome," he answered. "brittle bone disease. I was born with severe fractures to my legs, walking's so much of a bitch, most days I just prefer to use my wheelchair."

This finally solved what had bewildered Lucy since meeting the flight lieutenant. It had not been her business prior to investigate her shipmates, as long as they all performed their tasks she didn't consider their physical limits noteworthy for dissection.

"Make no mistake, I'm not good. I'm not even great. I'm the best damn helmsman in the Alliance fleet," Joker said confidently.

"You never mentioned it before," Lucy observed.

"I don't want to be treated like a charity case because of my disability," Joker answered. "I earned all of my accommodations, graduated top of my class. You can imagine who was in the back smiling as all these other douche bags got their asses kicked by a sick kid with the creaky legs; Me."

Smiling, Shepard nodded in acknowledgment. She always enjoyed Joker's forward, in your face attitude. He was forthright, and she respected that. They were interrupted when Anderson broke in on Joker's comm.

"What's the status report?" the Captain questioned.

"Just cleared the mass relay, Captain," Joker answered. "Stealth systems engaged, everything looks solid."

"Good, find a convoy and link us into the network," Anderson instructed. "I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."

"Aye, aye Captain," Joker said. "Oh, and you better brace yourself," he added as an afterthought. "I think Nihlus is headed your way."

"He's already here," Anderson snapped, his sneer felt through the comm. "Now tell Commander Shepard to meet me in the comm room for debriefing." The line went dead soon after.

Lucy gritted her teeth. "Great, you piss off the Captain and I have to deal with him." She performed a spin and started her way to the stern of the ship.

"Have fun," Joker muttered.

As Shepard passed the CIC, she overheard Navigator Pressly, whose responsibilities involved the galaxy map at the center of the room, arguing with an engineer over comm, no doubt down on the first deck, in the section containing the Normandy's drive core. It was pertaining to Nihlus and what seemed to be a grudging speciesism against the turian. Feelings left over from the First Contact War.

Closer now to the comm room, Robert Jenkins, who waved a happy hello to the Commander, was talking with Doctor Chakwas while leaning on a lone wall that separated CIC from the entrance to Lucy's destination. He was going on, quite ecstatically, about Nihlus.

The Commander returned the wave with a nod of acknowledgement and continued on. When the heavy plated door slid open, she was surprised to see only Nihlus waiting for her. She started down a walkway a few meters in length, that eventually led to an oval, open space with eight chairs, split by four on each side of the room. Nihlus stood stiffly in the middle, looking at a large viewing screen directly opposite of the door Lucy entered from. It was projecting images of Eden Prime.

"Commander Shepard," Nihlus said, turning to give his full attention to the young human. "I was hoping we would have time to talk." He crossed his armor clad arms, shifting his weight to his left leg. Lucy suspected he was inspecting her, and that was annoying.

"What about?" she asked quickly, narrowing her eyes. She was sick of flying blind, maybe she could get a straight answer from the Spectre.

"I'm interested in this Eden Prime, I've heard it's quite beautiful."

He was making small talk, this was not what Lucy was aiming for. "I wouldn't know. Never been there myself."

"But it has become something of a symbol for your people," Nihlus noted. "Proof that humanity could not only build colonies across the galaxy, but also protect them."

Now it was Lucy's turn to cross her arms, adding a heavy sigh for punctuation. "But how safe are they really?" Nihlus asked, again deciding to face the images dancing across the screen.

"Would you like to see firsthand?" Lucy asked.

"I am merely here to assess only one of the Alliance's capabilities," Nihlus stated. "But are they truly ready?"

Lucy was prepared to give him an earful, verbal sparring matches did little to entertain her long periods of time, she was being baited and didn't appreciate it. As she started to lean closer to the Spectre for impact, she heard the whizzing of the door open.

"I think it's time we informed the Commander about what's really going on," Captain Anderson suggested.

"Of course," the Spectre agreed, then giving his attention to Shepard. "This isn't a shakedown."

"Obviously, and it's about damn time I know what's going on," she focused the last part toward Anderson. "I don't like being kept in the dark."

"It was a necessary precaution under these circumstances," Anderson explained.

"So what is this, then?" Lucy asked.

"We're performing a covert pick up on Eden Prime, valuable cargo," Anderson revealed. "That's why we needed the stealth systems operational."

So this was the reason she had been out of the loop, why the whole crew was on pins and needles. And so, then, what was the Spectres involvement? Just what were they picking up?

"There must've been more of a reason than that to leave me out," Lucy observed.

"This comes down from the top, Shepard. Intel on a need to know basis," Anderson answered, casually strolling next to Nihlus to catch a glimpse of Eden Prime. "An excavation team on Eden Prime unearthed some kind of Prothean beacon."

Now she was getting to the bottom of this operation, the meat of all this secrecy. The Citadel, the mass relays, all of this came from the Protheans, their legacy lived on in nearly every species of the galaxy. This was curious, entertaining what this might mean, not just for the greater galactic community, but for humanity. A find like this could change everything.

"This is big, Shepard," Anderson said, almost confirming her thoughts. "Last time humanity made a discovery like this, it jumped our technology forward two hundred years."

Obviously Eden Prime would not have the facilities necessary to study and gain any useful insight from this beacon, so they were transferring it, but to where?

"This where Nihlus and the Council come in?" Lucy raised her suspicions.

"Not exactly," the Spectre said.

"We need their scientific expertise, they simply know more about the Protheans than we do," Anderson continued. "and sharing this discovery with the Council will improve our relations."

Along with that humanity was still recognized for their reputation, spreading too fast, too unpredictable, she heard the arguments all before. Whether they were validated was not the point, but she still understood what was being offered.

"None of this is why I am here, though," Nihlus stated, but that revelation did not come as a shock.

"He's here to evaluate you, Shepard," Anderson added.

Her expression clearly dismissed this as some kind of mistake. "What's going on, Captain?"

"The Alliance has been pushing for this for a long time, Commander," Anderson told her. "Humanity wants a larger role in shaping interstellar policy. We want more say with the Council."

Spectres represented the Council's power and authority, to be inducted as one, to be the first human Spectre, the Alliance's role in galactic politics would be completely reshaped.

"You single handedly survived an assault from three thresher maws, while everyone around you died," Nihlus summarized her career. "You've shown incredible instincts and situational awareness."

"This is all why I put your name forward as a candidate for the Spectres," Nihlus finished.

Not all of this was adding up, there was an unsung tension between turians and humans ever since an all out war was just narrowly avoided. "So why would a turian suggest a human for the Spectres?" Lucy wondered.

"Not all of us resent humanity. We see your potential, what you have to offer the rest of the galaxy," Nihlus started. "Spectres are an elite group, it's rare to find an individual with the skills necessary to join our ranks."

It was simply that Nihlus didn't care Lucy was a human, just that she could do her job, and if push came to shove, she was more than ready. Shepard respected that. Her tension lightened when she realized what was playing out around her. She could potentially represent something more for humanity, this was more than an opportunity, it was a challenge she would throw herself into.

"So, then, what is it I have to do?" Lucy asked.

"I'll be accompanying you across several missions, Eden Prime is simply the first in a number of operations I'll observe you in," Nihlus revealed.

"You will be leading the ground team," Anderson ordered Lucy. "Get that beacon back to the Normandy ASAP."

"When we-" Nihlus started to say, but was interrupted by Joker popping in over comm.

"Captain, we've got a problem."

"What is it, Joker?" Anderson asked urgently. This should have been a smooth operation, no one knew about the beacon outside of the Council and a number of Alliance brass.

"Transmission from Eden Prime, sir," Joker said anxiously. "You better see this."

"Bring it up on screen, now," Anderson said quickly, pushing closer to the television as if it would give some sort of comfort. But the video offered nothing near security.

Between the choppy static, a massive firefight was ensuing on the grounds of Eden Prime, near what appeared to be a dig site, possibly the dig site that held the beacon. A man in green armor was trying to calm the shaking vid, but several shots into his abdomen and he dropped dead, the vid rolling along the debris filled wastes of conflict.

There was far too much dust and chaos to make out the enemies, and the gunfire blared out nearly all the soldier's pleas for aid and ammo. One, a woman clad in white armor, kinetic shields bursting from rapid gunfire, shouted "Get down," but it seemed to be to no avail as, an instant later, a massive explosion rocked the vicinity, sending troops flying, limbs splattering along the terrain.

"We are taking heavy casualties!" the woman yelled. "Repeat, we are under attack and taking heavy casualties!"

She picked up the vid hoping to secure and make certain she was being heard, and that was when a strange, ominous hum broke out along the battlefield, shadowing all the noise and frantic responses from battle. The woman's jaw dropped, as did nearly every Alliance soldier she managed to inadvertently catch on camera, their faces frozen in disbelief, as if their very souls had been sucked from their bodies.

When the vid finally focused, the woman aimed the camera up toward the sky, where billowing black smoke, filled with red streaks of lightning, brought only silence. From the black sky, five long tendrils stretched forth, like the hand of God coming down to smite his foes. It was illuminated by a stark red glow, and only inched its way closer, it appeared to be attempting to grasp at the world beneath it. To lift up the soldiers that fought valiantly and crush them in its palm.

And then the vid cut off.

"It's only static now, sir," Joker said. "All comm traffic has went dead."

"Reverse and hold at thirty-eight point five," Anderson commanded.

Joker complied, the frame stopped at the black hand-like object in the sky. It was wickedly clear now, if anyone in the room assumed their eyes were playing tricks on them, there was no escaping the harsh reality of the haunting image.

"Status report," Anderson demanded.

"Seventeen minutes out, Captain," Joker said somberly. "No other Alliance ships in the area."

Anderson glanced around the room, and finally gave his orders; "Take us in Joker, fast and quiet. This just got a lot more complicated."

"I'll assemble the ground team," Shepard stated, her eyes still fixated on the hand from the sky. It was so silent, but deafening at the same time. Like something out of a dream.


	3. Chapter Two

**TWO**

"As it takes over"

Clad in her black armor, Lucy appeared as a soldier who had seen more than her fair share of intense combat. The N7 stamped above her right breast was slowly withering away from abrasions, and dents and scratches received from heavy firefights littered her thigh plating and along her biceps. Her gloved left hand clinging to the frigate's railing above her head, Shepard's right hand collapsed her Elanus Risk Control Services M-3 Predator heavy pistol and snapped it into place on her right thigh.

Her favored weapon, though, rested on her back; manufactured by Ariake Technologies, the M-23 Katana shotgun was devastating at close range. Capable of plucking the head off any opponent and splattering it about like a watermelon crashing against the concrete from a twenty meter drop.

Joker had carefully navigated the Normandy, avoiding collisions against enemy forces while deftly maneuvering between the mountains and rolling hills that shaped Eden Prime's terrain. It was a lush, vibrant world, and Corporal Richard Jenkins was both pleased and distraught at returning to his home under these circumstances.

"Even paradise gets boring," Jenkins said, trying to be heard over the roar of the engines. "But I never wanted to come back like this."

He, along with Shepard, Kaidan and Nihlus were the ground team going in. A small, covert operation, which Shepard hoped would draw little attention. Their objective was quite simple; obtain the Prothean beacon and radio for extraction. The team had little to no intel on the conflict below, Lucy would have to assess the situation as she moved through the thick of it. She always did prefer thinking on her feet.

"Nihlus will scout ahead of your position," Anderson said, approaching the team as the Normandy opened its hangar doors, a heavy orange glow penetrating what was once darkness.

"You won't be coming with us?" Jenkins asked, sounding disappointed.

"I move faster on my own," Nihlus answered as he loaded a clip into his pistol and then immediately darted outside, grass rustling beneath his light feet.

"He'll feed you status reports throughout the mission," Anderson stated. "Otherwise, I want radio silence."

Kaidan recognized there was a priority, and respected that, but he couldn't help but feel obligated to the colonists caught in the conflict. "What about survivors, Captain?" Kaidan asked when he realized that wasn't resting at the forefront of everyone's thoughts.

"Helping survivors is a secondary objective," Anderson said. "The beacon must be recovered."

Kaidan only nodded in confirmation, but took to heart the fact that he knew those people were not responsible for the chaos bearing down on them, and noted he would safeguard them were it at all possible.

"We've got Nihlus' back," Lucy assured the Captain, casually putting the topic back on course.

"Then the mission's yours now, Commander," Anderson said. "Good luck."

The Normandy stabilized, Lucy and her team sprinted from the ramp dangling inches away from the cliffside, their feet securely touching the jagged edges of rock forming the cliff. Dust and sand was swept into the air from the disturbance and the Normandy flew away discreetly. The three were on their own now.

Equipping their pistols, Lucy, Kaidan and Jenkins began their trek along the side, sand slowly turning into grass, with trees littering one of the paths ahead. Along with that were strange, pale bags, floating misshapen balls of gas native to the planet of Eden Prime. These were not their targets. Shooting the gasbags would trigger explosions that rivaled the grenades Lucy had clipped along her belt, and it would be a waste of ammo, which they were limited on.

"It's been hit hard, Commander," Nihlus reported over comm. "Hostiles everywhere."

Two beeps followed, signaling Nihlus had once again closed off the comm channel. Shepard needed to stay on her toes, clearly the enemy was there for the beacon, and a mutual goal meant hostility would generally multiply as all of them closed in on the target.

"Did you guys know that Nihlus took down an entire platoon once in his career?" Jenkins wondered as Shepard continued forward, taking a path along the edge of the cliff.

"Only once?" Lucy asked tiredly. "I expected more from a Spectre."

To this Kaidan only chuckled and Jenkins simply rolled his eyes, he knew he had a certain admiration for Nihlus and the fantasies behind what he took on for a living. But it was only because Jenkins saw himself there one day, an elite Spectre leading humanity against the unhinged chaos of a tortured galaxy.

The path started to curve to the right and the team slowed down, allowing Lucy to take point, while Jenkins and Kaidan fell to the rear. Pressing her body tightly against the boulders and jagged edges that formed a wall of earth, the Commander just ever so slightly poked her head out, giving the all clear, she proceeded forward first, and alone. Taking her first few steps out, she noticed how eerie the silence was, as it the fighting had come to a stop, but at what cost? Suddenly, four drones burst forth from secure spots and opened immediate fire on Shepard.

Running back risked both her position and her safety, calculating her options she discovered a small rock not far ahead of her, and fell into a diving roll to evade the swarms fire. Secure, she evaluated her options. Attempting to peek her head out from the side, she was greeted by blasts of high-energy phasic slugs that slowly chipped away at her limited cover.

"The Commander's pinned down!" Jenkins roared.

"Richard, don't," Kaidan protested, but it was to no avail.

Now gripping his assault rifle, Jenkins opened fire on the geth, just barely managing to lower their shields before his abdomen was shredded by the turrets mounted on the drones. Jenkins fell over dead, his kinetic shields unable to stand against the barrage from a squad of geth.

"Damn it," Shepard cursed, motioning for Kaidan to open fire from his secured position.

With the swarm distracted, Lucy again poked her head out from cover, their flight patterns were erratic, but carefully programmed to keep motion, this meant they were avoiding both gunfire and even biotic abilities. Darting around, her grayed blue eyes finally fixated on a target.

The drones purpose was removing her and Kaidan, ignoring the environment around them. Shepard, though, knew better than that, as she always believed one should mind their surroundings, especially in the heat of battle. Stretching out her arms, Lucy knew the timing had to be perfect, her aim absolutely precise. If she failed, the geth would be onto her, and alter their functions according to the revealed data.

She squeezed the trigger, releasing one carefully produced shot at the gasbag now floating casually through the armed drones. Before the geth realized it, the gasbag exploded into a volley of fire, destroying one, and taking out the shields on the remaining three.

This was their chance to act; propelling herself over the safety of cover Lucy hurled a singularity at them, sucking the drones into the warped space as Kaidan emptied his assault rifle. When the singularity eventually burst, the drones fell to the ground in bits and pieces.

Lucy eased her arms down and holstered her pistol, she turned to observe Kaidan checking the status of Jenkins pulse, she already knew the verdict, but respected Alenko's drive to know for certain. It was just how he operated.

"He's gone," Kaidan confirmed.

"Leave his body here," Lucy said. "We can't risk him slowing us down."

Kaidan understood and obliged, running his palm over Richard's face, he pulled the Corporal's eyes shut and straightened his legs. He fell in behind Shepard and the two continued onward. Silence again filled the air, and Shepard was able to gather her thoughts.

Geth had not been seen outside the Veil in two hundred years, they were an isolationist species, preferring to carve out their own section of the galaxy to colonize. Something more was occurring here, and Lucy was certain it had to do with the strange vessel haunting her imagination.

She couldn't help but fall back on that image, a black claw striking from the heavens. All of this was tied into the beacon, of that she was sure. Her team would just have to retrieve it before the hostiles did.

The path was winding down to a large area, with a hill opposite of Shepard casting a shadow on the sight they laid witness to; an Alliance marine hunkered down behind a line of crates that once were stacked and ready for shipment, now thrown and broken, their goods no doubt rendered useless by the explosions and gunfire.

Far more disturbing were the dragon's teeth, devices with spikes near four meters in height, each with a human stabbed onto one. There were eleven of these dragon's teeth in all, and they slowly started to retract back inside the large base they protruded from.

The humans on them were pitch black and faded gray, as if all pigment had been drained from them. A strange, blue electrical current coursed throughout their bodies, and the gaping hole in their chest revealed nothing that hinted to their human origins. When the bodies finally smacked down on the ground below, the Husks pulled themselves up, and rushed at the Alliance soldiers.

"My God," Kaidan gasped. "They're still alive!"

"Those things aren't human anymore," Lucy shouted, realizing Kaidan was hesitating to open fire. "Shoot them."

Closing his mouth, Kaidan was forced to agree with the Commander and opened fire, preparing to close the gap between him and the marine clad in white armor. Shepard opened her palm and sent the nearest Husk off its feet, spiraling out of control, giving the marine an opportunity to easily pick it off.

Lucy equipped her shotgun and blasted the upper torso off another Husk, it collapsing in a smoking heap. From her belt she snatched two grenades, tossing one at the group of geth troopers progressing forward, attempting to flank the distracted three. The resulting explosion ripped the geth apart, buying them valuable time.

In that time Kaidan and the marine had managed to pick off a number of the remaining hostiles, leaving only a heavy geth trooper and two Husks. Shepard switched to her pistol, this time taking the heads off both Husks, and finally Kaidan threw a warp at the last geth, stripping it of its armor, allowing the marine a clean shot to end the battle.

With the storm over, Lucy and Kaidan approached the marine, whom Shepard recognized as the woman in the distress vid they received on the Normandy.

"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the Two-twelve, you the one in charge here ma'am?" the white armored woman asked.

"I'm Commander Lucy Shepard," she introduced herself. "You all that's left, Williams?"

"Yes," Ashley confirmed. "I've been defending this position for a half hour since the geth rushed the dig site. You saw what they did to my men."

The Husks must have been what she was referencing. That was not the type of technology Shepard knew as geth, making her wonder what other cards were on the table here. Obviously the bodies had been human, but they were transformed, acting like zombies craving the flesh of the living. This was the stuff of nightmares.

"We think the geth are after the Prothean beacon," Lucy suggested. "Do you know where it is?"

Ashley nodded. "Just over that hill." She pointed at the very hill that was currently casting its shadow over them.

"Maybe you should come with us," Kaidan said. "You might be a valuable asset."

"Yeah, I owe it to these people to fight," Ashley agreed. "Commander?"

Lucy cocked an eyebrow, she knew this was Kaidan's way of keeping a survivor along, but they could also use the extra gun. "Sure, cover our rear."

Williams stood to attention and saluted, then firmed her grip on the assault rifle and they continued over the hill. It was not very steep and required little effort to climb, reaching the top caused the most disappointment. The beacon was gone.

"It was here!" Ashley exclaimed, obviously agitated that she didn't manage to protect her only objective.

"The geth must have it," Kaidan stated, to which Shepard nodded in agreement.

Lucy was preparing to question Ashley on where the geth might take it, when her comm hummed to life again.

"Things have changed, Commander," it was Nihlus. "I have found a small spaceport to investigate and I will wait for you there."

It then beeped dead once again. Were the geth here to solely obtain the beacon, they would be returning it to that strange black vessel, if it was a ship, and that meant they needed the spaceport. Lucy stashed her weapon away and looked at her team.

"We need to reach the spaceport," she concluded.

"All right," Ashley said. "It's not far past the research station to the west."

Careful not to draw any fire, the trio started west toward the large station slowly coming into sight. Hostile infantry was growing lighter and Lucy had to assume the geth were packing up to leave, especially if the beacon was in their grasps. This left a small window of opportunity to assault the enemy and get it back, no matter the cost.

Nihlus closed off the comm channel and faced his former mentor; Saren Arterius. The spaceport was deserted save for the lone, renown Spectre. It was certainly a pleasant surprise to find aid at such a critical time. Nihlus holstered his assault rifle and greeted the legendary turian.

"Saren, this isn't your mission, what are you doing here?" he asked, baffled.

"The Council thought you could use some help on this one," Saren replied warmly, laying a hand on Nihlus' shoulder for reassurance, and then proceeded to walk past him, as if looking for something.

"I wasn't expecting to find the geth here," Nihlus admitted, hope lingering in his voice. "The situation's bad."

Still, for all that, Nihlus knew they could prevail. Shepard had shown exemplary cunning and skill in her previous operations and he no doubt knew that with this team, the geth would be stopped here.

"Don't worry. I've got it under control," Saren said, grabbing the pistol at his hip.

Turning to Nihlus, he fired a single shot in the back of his former apprentice's head, whose blood spilled out along the port, spraying the crates with specks of blue. Saren's eyes flickered like a jolt of lightning and he walked to a train that would take him to the other side of the spaceport. The only witness to his involvement dead.

Or so he thought. For, buried among the stacks of toppled and slanted cargo, hid a young human dock worker, frozen with an intense shock at what had played out before his eyes. And the young man wondered how long he had at this point.


End file.
